


Rigid

by LovedByFew



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Harry Potter - Freeform, Severus Snape - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-23
Updated: 2019-01-22
Packaged: 2019-10-14 20:05:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17515139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LovedByFew/pseuds/LovedByFew
Summary: She was a strange Hufflepuff, really more of a Slytherin. Or not. Maybe more of a Ravenclaw. Or not. But definitely not a Gryffindor. One thing was certain, she had anger management problems.





	1. 1

She sat on a desk in the back of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. It was her first year as a substitute teacher at Hogwarts. Her deep blue eyes scanned the room as the second year students finished up their exams. Pacing up and down the rows had its advantages. People were less likely to cheat, and she got to read all their names so she could place a face with a name. The Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor this year, an auror named Alastor Moody, had apparently not been Alastor Moody. She was Nicolette Epsilon Warner. She had lived in many places in her life, never settling down in one place for too long. Finally when she was 11 her family stopped moving and she went to school. She had not been a very popular girl, though she played beater on her house Quidditch team. Before graduating Nicolette had been a Hufflepuff. Though rather an abnormal Hufflepuff. She was always quick to anger, and rather a rambunctious young soul. Somehow she always seemed to be getting into trouble; being out late at night, or fighting another student. Her thoughts were dark today as she watched the young students. Their last teacher wasn't even a teacher, and now they had her for the last couple of weeks. Albus Dumbledore, the current headmaster of the school, bore the grave news that Lord Voldemort had returned. She had contemplated this before, in her younger years, what she would do in an instance like that. Now she actually had to do something about it. The small 12 year olds had finished their exams by the time she pulled herself from her thoughts. "Bring you tests up to me, front cover closed with your name on it. You can expect your final grade to be owled to you no later than July the 1st." She barked as she reached the front. Some students compared her to Snape when she talked. She spoke slowly, measured, but with a certain quality that always caught your attention. Getting a class to be silent without trying was a gift that she possessed. As the last of the students left the room she looked down at the papers. The younger Creevy boy was not good at this subject, based on his first page of answers. She places the exams down on the desk that was, temporarily, hers. She really hadn't the slightest ambition to spend the better part of her summer holiday grading papers and tests, so she took her place behind the desk and began grading before lunch.

She had an hour before her next class, so she got through 10 of the exams. The way she saw it, the imposter of a teacher actually was rather a good teacher. Many of the second year Gryffindor and Ravenclaw students understood the basic principles of Defence Against the Dark Arts. Some of the little ones still had a long way to go, but others can even name specific creatures. They don't even have the option of Care of Magical Creatures class until their third year. She heard the bell go off and footsteps rattle along the walls. With a wave of her wand the door opened inward, admitting the fourth year students to class. Gryffindor students in their fourth or first year had the unfortunate luck to have the majority of their classes with Slytherin house. The school rotated which houses had classes together, to create bonds between the houses. No one liked being paired with Slytherin except for Slytherin. As a Hufflepuff, she had most of her classes with Ravenclaw, though she found them pretentious and stuck up. Though some of her classes had been had been with Slytherin house. She knew what they were like, and what everyone had to go through with them. As the students chatted on she cleared her throat. Silence immediately came over the room. She gazed out over the crowded room, taking silent roll call with her piercing eyes. She then snapped her fingers and the end of term exams started to pass themselves out. The copy of the test that landed in front of Harry Potter vanished into a puff of smoke. "That's not fair, he's been in class as much as the rest of us!" Draco Malfoy squawked. "Zip it. It was part of the championship rules. All those who participated are to be counted exempt from all end of term exams. That applies to Mr. Potter as well. Besides, he would complete this test with at least double your score Mr. Malfoy." She crossed her arms in front of her. Most of the Gryffindor students were struggling to choke back laughter. "I'm not taking the exam then." He pouted. "Fine." She shrugged. Everyone looked up at her, shocked by her nonchalant answer. "Though I would advise against that course of action, as your final grade would drop dramatically. Your father really would have something to say to you then, wouldn't he?" Everything in the room stopped. Nobody dared to breathe for almost a whole minute. "Your time is wasting." She smirked and everyone whipped out quills and ink. As the others got started she pointed at Harry and beckoned him to her. He stood in front of her desk and she spelled up a comfortable chair for him. Harry Potter took the seat and leaned over to her. "I know you could have taken this exam and done quite well on it. Your marks in this subject have always been high." She whispered to him. "How d'you know that?" He asked. "I was a teacher’s aid last year." She smirked. "Last year, but you're a teacher now?" He seemed confused. "I had such high marks in everything that when I asked Dumbledore if they needed a substitute he didn't hesitate to hire me." Her smirk turned into a smile. "You can either sit quietly as everyone else takes the test, or you can help me grade the second year's exams." She gave him his options. He thought about it for a moment. "Might as well help out." He shrugged. Nicolette guessed he decided this way because it would take his mind off the happenings of late. He and Cedric Diggory seemed close. Cedric was a good guy, he was in her old house. This could take his mind off of Cedric, if only for a moment. Distractions for him are probably few and far between right now.

As the hour wound down she looked up from her papers. Hermione Granger had finished ten minutes ago, but everyone else was still engaged in their tests. Nicolette just smirked to herself as she thought about the practical exam she was giving them next class period, before they were sent home for the summer holiday. She would ask Harry to demonstrate for her; just to see how good he really was, and to irritate the Malfoy boy. The bell was about the ring as she called out "Time is up. Quills down." Some groaned, and others sighed with relief. They brought their exams to her desk and filed slowly out of the classroom. As the last of her students left the room she let out a sigh of her own. It would only be her and Nikko at home for the entire summer holiday. Nikko was a Russian white fox she had taken in during a particularly harsh winter while her family had lived there. He was just a kit then. As good as Nikko was at providing riveting conversation, she did not relish the thought of spending the summer alone with him . . . again. Though there was nothing that she could do to avoid it, she did not want to endure it. Yet again. Her parents had bought her a cottage during her seventh year at Hogwarts. She liked it well enough, it was in Brecons Beacon National Park. It was an odd circumstance, but she was the only resident allowed. It was secluded, and she never had visitors. She had gotten herself to Hogwarts for the first year, and she had very much enjoyed it. The long train ride had always felt like a waste of time to her. She never was one to waste, be it food or time. She never let anyone around here waste it either, if she could ever help it. Practicality was key to her. She pondered the seemingly endless days of nothingness approaching, and visibly cringed. She turned and stared out the large window overlooking the grounds. It was so green outside, but she felt so dull. She didn't have anything to look forward to until September first. She sighed again, and packed up the exams that she still had to grade, and started to make her way to the teacher’s chambers. On the way there she looked up from the floor to see small groups of students shaking hands and hugging each other. She wished that she had had friends when she went to school here.

She walked back to her chambers that night with a huge stack of exams in her arms. She barely set the papers down when a knock came on her door. She looked up, confused by the noise for a moment, but realized what it was and opened the door. Her old Potions Professor stood in front of her. “Albus asked me to give this to you on my way to sleep tonight. Read it carefully Ms. Warner.” He sneered. He never did seem to like her very much, but he had never had a reason to pick on her in his classes. She had rarely spoken, and her potions were most commonly close to perfect. She closed the door behind the ill tempered man, and opened the letter. It read ‘ _Please excuse the intrusion, but complications in the Order have arisen, therefore it will be necessary for Severus Snape to be staying with you in your home this summer holiday. These measures have been taken for your protection and his. Yours always - Albus Dumbledore_.’ She frowned. What was worse, a summer alone or a summer with Snape? She expected him to irrational, irritated, and downright unpleasant. She supposed it was a good thing she had a guest suite as well as her own. The pile of tests lay forgotten as she left her chambers with the letter clutched in her hand.


	2. 2

She was not happy. She followed a well known path to the Headmaster’s office, with the note that she so detested, even though it was just a piece of parchment. “What is the meaning of this?” She growled at the old man in his chair. “Meaning of what?” He raised his eyebrows. She threw the note down on his desk and crossed her arms. “Oh, that. Severus will be needing a safe place to hide while in the field, one that is not known to Voldemort. Upon joining the Order of the Phoenix and volunteering your home for meetings, I was under the impression that you wanted to help.” Albus smiles softly. “Might you warn me next time you want me to house someone?” She hissed. “I did warn you. Summer Holiday is not for a week, and I had written you a note, therefore you were warned.” He continued to smile. She was out of words, which in an argument did not happen often for her. “I see.” She snagged the note off of the Headmaster’s desk and nearly stomped out of the room. She felt foolish, like a pouty child. It was a waste of energy, and she hated to waste. She returned to her quarters that night and saw the pile of exams on her desk. She glowered at them for a moment before getting ready for bed. “What is Albus thinking?” She wondered. “Severus and I don’t get along, why me?” She pulled the covers over her head and snuggled up to her pillow, not wanting to think about what she had to do this summer. She didn’t want to be nice to him, at all.

She woke up the next morning to the bright light of the sun peeking through the window. She glared at it. Then it dawned on her. Professor Snape would be much happier if she were miserable. She would not let him have this satisfaction. She threw the blankets off and almost flew through the shower. Nikko watched as she graded exams before heading out to breakfast, she finished 12. She left for breakfast with a smirk on her face. She was proud of herself. There would be no reason for Severus Snape to come back after this summer holiday. She was determined. She had to focus on other things now though, she had practical exams to administer today. She looked forward to it actually. It would be the first years, third, and seventh years today. The rest would come later that week. Poor seventh years, they have to do it twice no matter what. One half was to be today, the actual defending part. Next time they would be dueling, mostly because she thought it would be fun, and a good way to assess their skills. She arrived at her classroom, waiting for the young first years to file in.   
After the first years had completed their practical tests, the examiners joined her up at the front of the room. “You’ve done very well this year, did you teach these children all year?” One of them asks. “Not only for this class. I am the designated substitute for Hogwarts, so I teach anything that needs be taught.” She smirked to herself, she wasn’t just a teacher, she was Super Teacher! Okay, maybe that was a little far, but she did teach multiple subjects. Not everyone could do that. Severus Snape certainly couldn't. She smiled to herself, she did that often. She held inside jokes with herself, and big surprise, no one else ever got them. She walked the other examiners to the next room, where the third years would be testing. She remembered Remus and his little obstacle course, and decided to do the same. It was a great way to test the students and see if they learned anything. She could teach, but it was up to the student to learn. She waited at the beginning of the course, looking over the students. “Okay guys, here’s how this works. First get in alphabetical order.” She ordered. The students shuffled around. “Alright, step two. Starting at the end of the alphabet, so the “z” end, we will go through the course. This course exam will be roughly 20% of your grade.” She paused for a moment. They all look at each other, that’s a huge part of their grade. “Whatever you do, do not leave the path, no matter what tempts you. If you need help, send up green sparks with your wand, and either an instructor or I will come to aid you.” They all look at each other, not exactly sure what is going on. “Look sharp now.” She pat her palm with my wand. The students start to go through the course, but they all seemed to have forgotten her warning. Perhaps the Hinkypunk that she caught is too persuasive for them.

  
The night before she left to go home for the summer holiday arrived. She stood next to her window overlooking the Forbidden Forest. She gazed into the trees, as if waiting for something to look back at her. Unbenounced to her, Severus Snape was. He stood just behind the tree line, watching her. He was thinking, for that was something that he often did. He was thinking about her, wondering why Albus was making him stay with her for the summer. She was a perfectly capable witch, and he knew for a fact that she was talented in almost everything she tried, except Divination. He overheard her grade from her first year in it. That was less than impressive. He was thinking about how miserable they would both be this holiday. He promised himself that he would be away from her as much as possible, to protect her. No one else had to be in danger, not this time around. He was determined that no one else would die because of him. He looked back into the forest, and dreaded this coming holiday. He dreaded it almost as much as she did. She turned from the window and gazed at her empty room. Only tomorrow’s muggle [clothes](https://www.fashmates.com/set/5b57b1c4acd0a87f650fe400-1532840441019) sat out on her bed. She knew that he would raise his eyebrows at her, but she didn’t care. She had no intention of impressing him with her wardrobe, attitude, or anything else for that matter. She just wanted to be home with Nikko, and wait for her family to visit like they did every year. What would they say when they see a grown man living with her? It wasn’t uncommon for her to take in a traveler every now and then, but for the whole summer. Not to mention she was pretty sure that her parents knew him. 


	3. 3

She woke up, but did not want to. She did not look forward to today. The only thing that she even slightly looked forward to was seeing what Snape chose for his muggle clothes. Even that thought did not lift her spirits, she didn’t want to go home, grade, and live life as a bored homebody. She thought about planning a trip to get away from Snape, but she didn’t want to leave him alone in her house. She was not happy with this arrangement. Although Severus Snape wasn’t either. She knew that for a fact. Perhaps they would just be so miserable they would finally have something in common. She snagged her suitcase full of exams and her collapsible broom, off of the bed. She knew the man in charge of the Nimbus company, he owed her a favor, so she had him design her collapsible broom for her. He had since made well over a million Galleons on that model. She had a spare, that she would allow Snape to use. She made her way to the Great Hall for the farewell breakfast, no point traveling on an empty stomach. She sat in her spot at the end of the long staff table. The problem for her today, was that her end was opposite of Professor Snape. She would have to flag him down before she left, or he would never find her home. And that was tempting, but she thought better of it.

After the farewell breakfast she waited outside the Great Hall for Snape. He nearly walked right into her while he looked for her. Sometimes he had such bad tunnel vision. They walked in silence down to the train, she decided to take the train back the London this year. It would take longer, but it would give her more time to think. She normally thought about things before she actually did them. Normally. There were some things that she just did out of instinct. Snape was still dressed in his robes when they boarded the train. She thought that he should have changed by now, but she supposed that he would wait until they were almost in the station. There was nothing for them to talk about really, so neither of them spoke. She read a book about dark creatures and how to defend yourself against them, and he stared out the window for a while. Finally, about two thirds of the way to the station she opened her mouth to speak. “I have no food at the house, so I will have to stop for something for at least tonight before I can really go grocery shopping.” She glanced up from her book. Snape was still looking out of the window. “Professor?” She asked to see if he was listening to her. He looked back at her. “Did you hear what I said?” She asked. “Yes.” He responded quietly. “Okay.” Nicolette looked back to her book. The sky outside started to grow dark when the train pulled into the station. Severus Snape excused himself to change as they were pulling in. She exited the train and waited on the platform for him. He joined her not long later, dressed in dark jeans, and a black thermal tee. She could also see the black leather boots pointing out from the cuff of his pants. He made a good muggle, a little dark, but a good muggle. She stuck her wand in her purse, grabbed her case off of the floor and walked out into the muggle world.

She kept her purse close, and Snape walked along next to her, but he followed her direction. He had no clue where they were, and had no intention of losing sight of her. They rounded a corner and she entered the shop three doors ahead. There was food here, and she promptly chose out a few things for that night’s meal. She grabbed some chicken, carrots, celery, garlic, onion, butter, and mushrooms. She paid the man in muggle money, and they left the shop. He followed her outside of town and below a bridge. She opened her case and took out the two collapsible brooms. She handed one to him. Severus took it, but was not sure what to do with it, he had never seen one of these booms. She rolled her eyes, and tapped it with her wand. The broom handle sprung out of the bristles. He stared at the contraption curiously, so this is how they worked. He knew that this model was expensive, but for her to have two was kind of amazing. No one he knew besides the Malfoy’s could afford more than one. “They were a gift from the owner of Nimbus.” She notices his gaze at the brooms. She had already attached her case and the bags of food to her broom, and risen into the air a little. She touched the tip of her wand the the very end of the bristles of her broom. They started to glow a bright green, easy to see in the dark, but from the ground it would just look like a falling star. Severus hated to admit it, but she was clever. Exceptionally so. She took off, and Severus attached his small case to his borrowed broom and took off after her.

They flew for a long time. It was dark, and beginning to get chilly when she started to descend. Severus followed her down until he saw the mountain she was headed straight for. Did she remember the muggle laws of physics? If they ran into the mountain it would hurt. She drifted to the left at the last minute, and spiraled downwards. He didn’t see anything down there, but followed. As she touches down the lights in the front porch came on. He was impressed this time. It was a modest little house, that you could tell was larger inside than it looked on the outside. Nicolette walked in and went straight to the kitchen. She was ready for food. She chopped the chicken and started it on the stove. She waved her wand and the vegetables cut themselves up into tiny pieces and threw themselves into a large pot in the stove. She added a large glob of butter to the vegetables, and they started to saute. She measured out three cups of water and added spices to it, along with something called chicken bouillon. Severus Snape had never seen someone prepare this way. Granted the extent of his kitchen abilities ended at cold cereal. He watched her intently, but also waiting to be shown where he would be staying. She was content to just cook. It gave her something to think about besides the intruder in her living room. She watched the sizzling veggies, and stirred the cooking chicken. She crushed the garlic cloves into the large pot and waited a few more minutes. She added the water and spices to the pot, and turned down the heat. She smiled to herself. Cooking was just like potion making, it took passion, and skill. Not to mention a little flare.

When the soup was done she dished up three bowls of it and called out to her pet. “Nikko.” She called out. He came to her from her room, and she smiled as he came trotting up to her. He was an affectionate creature, especially around dinner time. It was as if he was thanking her for the meal. Severus Snape just watched as she embraced him, and felt the strangest pang of jealousy. He wanted someone to love him and embrace him. He shook his head to get rid of the thought. Nicolette placed one of the bowls on the floor, and brought the other two to the oak table. 


	4. 4

She took the dishes and put them in the sink. “This way.” She acknowledged him curtly. He rose and followed her to one of the closed doors. He looked down when something brushed his leg. He saw the little white fox, Nikko was investigating him. Nikko, while not human, understood a lot of what was going on. He was aware of Nicolette’s unhappiness, and he could sense how tense this dark man was. He was also very protective of Nicolette. She was very dear to him. Nikko wouldn’t let anything happen to her. Who would make him soup then? Who would bring him out to the forest to find mice? Who would be with him when he was scared? Nikko wouldn’t let anything happen to her. Naturally, he had to investigate this newcomer. It would be silly not to. Wait, why was she leading him to the spare bedroom? Is this man staying with us? Nikko looked up at his alpha. She was not his owner, or his master, she was his alpha. The bond was far stronger than that of any owner and their pet. She looked down at him, and he came over to her. She bent down to pick up Nikko and she kept walking down the hall. She opened the door to the spare bedroom, and showed Severus Snape in. “This is where you will be staying for the summer.” Nikko could tell that she was not happy about this arrangement, but he could also sense that she didn’t have much of a choice in the matter.

Nicolette then exited the room to bring her things to her bedroom. Snape had his own suite, so there was no reason he should bother her for the rest of the night. She was free to breathe. She felt crowded just knowing that Snape was in the other room. She needed to wash off the stress of the day. When she left the shower she dug out her sweats and a tank top and put her slippers on. She looked at her case bitterly. She still had all of those exams to grade. She sat down at her desk to start grading. When she looked at her clock next she saw that two hours had passed and she still hadn’t graded a single question. She pushed the tests away from her and looked out her window. Nothing. There was nothing there. She couldn’t distract herself from her situation, because there was nothing there. She took to glaring at the floorboards. She loved this little house, but it felt like prison right now. She rose from her chair and plodded out to the refrigerator. As she opened the door, she remembered that there was nothing in it. She started to grumble to herself about the lack of food. She opened a drawer and took out a pad of paper and an ballpoint pen. As she started the list she figured that if they were going to be in the same house this summer, she might as well know what he liked to eat. That might make them both a little less miserable. She looked over at the hallway leading to Snape’s room. She didn’t want to talk to him, but she didn’t have anyone else to talk to. She looked down at Nikko, who had followed her to the kitchen, hoping for more food. “Go get him please.” She muttered to him. Nikko just stared at her for a moment. He got up on his hind legs and set his front paws on her leg. “I know, he won’t be back here again though. This summer only.” She cooed to him. Nikko licked the tips of her fingers with his little pink tongue. He trotted down the hall to Snape’s room and started scratching the door. If he wasn’t already asleep she would ask what foods he liked. A few seconds later the door opened. Snape looked down to see Nikko. Nikko, in response, tipped his head to one side. “What?” Snape asked him. Nikko got up and started walking toward Nicolette.

Snape followed the fox and joined her at the kitchen table. “Since we will be in the same house this holiday, I figured that I could at least be civil.” She started. “I will be going to get food tomorrow morning around 11:00. I would like to know what kinds of things you like to or would normally eat.” She glared at him slightly. He thought for a moment. No one had ever offered to cook for him before. Not since he was a child, and it was mandatory for his parents. Even then, his mother was no chef, and his father hated everything that he had liked. “I tend to be a very simple man. I like meat, and vegetables. Fruits are up for dispute, dairy is alright generally. I do not tend to like sugar, except in the case of hot chocolate.” He told her. She raised her eyebrow at him. “Hot chocolate? You aren’t coffee kind of guy?” She almost giggled. “No, coffee has never been to my liking, why?” He got a little defensive. “Nothing. I’m just not a coffee drinker either.” She smiled slightly. That was not something that she had expected.

The next morning she woke early, as she always did at home. She followed the small staircase that lead below. Down here was a family room, an exercise room, and a door to the back porch. Today she headed toward the exercise room. She liked boxing, the muggle sport, so down here she had a punching bag, a rack of free weights, and her set of gloves. That was all she needed. She did plenty of walking on her own, and there was the lake just down the hill for swimming. She liked muggle music, and the things they made to play the music. She had a stereo with a radio, a disc player, and a tape player. She loved it, but the speakers were going out on it because she used it so much. She would fix it eventually. She pressed the play button on the disc player and the music started rumbling out of the speakers. Joan Jett was yelling about her bad reputation today. Nicolette smiled as she slipped on her [gloves](https://www.fashmates.com/set/5b57b1c4acd0a87f650fe400-1533443932409) and started hitting the bag hanging from the ceiling. Three or four songs passed and she was almost done when the door opened behind her. She didn’t notice there was someone back there until he made a noise. Nicolette whirled around and almost smashed Severus Snape’s face. “What the heck were you thinking?” She shouted at him. Severus wasn’t used to people yelling at him anymore, this was strange to him. Without thinking he drew his wand on her. However, before he could cast anything she actually did hit him. Severus Snape lay sprawled out on the floor in the doorway. “You never knew why I was always fighting, did you?” She glowered at him. She didn’t even care that she was in her gym clothes now. She was just so angry with him.


	5. 5

He didn’t know what to do, no one had struck him like that before. It was true, he didn’t know why she fought so much. He just assumed she couldn’t control her temper. Her face was turning redder and redder as she started down at him, but she was completely under control. She wouldn’t let it happen again, not after last time. She knew that if she really lost her temper, there was nothing Severus could do to escape his impending doom. Severus watched her as she calmed down. Her color slowly returned to normal, and her breathing slowed. She was still glaring at him, but she was considerably less angry at him. To show a last assertion of dominance she stepped over him and made for the shower. This was her territory, and would not suffer an uninvited beta to have any control while they were in her turf. She stepped into the shower, rather satisfied with herself. She knew that he didn’t expect what she had done, and she knew that he wasn’t likely to interrupt again. She dried off with her green towel, and [dressed](https://www.fashmates.com/set/5b57b1c4acd0a87f650fe400-1533443144555) in some muggle clothes so she could go and get some food for them. Whether she liked him or not, Albus still needed him, so Snape had to eat as well as she did. Aldi would suffice, and it was close to her. She opened the door to her room, and Nikko came skidding into the room. It seemed that he wasn’t overly fond of Snape either.

She looked up from the fox and found Snape staring after him curiously, apparently Nikko fascinated him. “I am heading to get some food, you may stay here or join me, however, if you join me you will have to don muggle attire.” She frowned at him. She was not looking forward to his choice, no matter what it was. She didn’t want to leave him here with Nikko, but she didn’t want him with her either. “I will join you. Can’t be too careful these days.” He frowned in return. She just nodded. She didn’t look forward to spending time with him, but she had to admit, if dueling broke out she wanted him on her side. She pulled out the collapsible brooms and walked outside with her purse tied around her waist. Miss Granger really was a bright witch. They had experimented with endless expansion spells, which resulted in two wonderfully endless bags. She tied one around her waist before they took off into the air. She contemplated how she could make this summer holiday as comfortable as possible. She did not need a new feud with Snape. She did not intend on playing nice, but she would bare this so the Albus would let her do real things rather than just babysitting one of his pawns. She thought about how she could keep her distance, but little did she know Severus Snape was thinking about the same thing. Not because he didn’t like her, but for her safety. Although, he didn’t like her. They landed outside of town and walked a few blocks to a small store with a large blue and orange sign the read Aldi. He tipped his head to one side as they walked in. He had never been allowed to go with his parents when they went out to buy food. So this was very new to him. He had spent all of his childhood prowling the playground, and hiding in the bushes from the bigger kids. Not to mention Lily. He thought about her often. She would know what to do to pacify their situation. She knew how to do everything. He missed her. Snape looked over at his companion, who pulled the pad of paper and pen out of her endless bag. She grabbed one of the metal carts and started hunting down the foods that she had planned for. Snape could see her wand poking out of her bag, and he thought that she was being a little over cautious, having it so easily accessible. But as he thought this he looked out the large window by the cashiers. Outside there were two men he recognized. Lucius Malfoy and his son Draco. As much as he liked that family, he could not be seen. And she could not be hurt. “Nicolette.” He whispered. She looked over her shoulder as she was surprised that he had used her first name. But as soon as she looked she saw what he was so nervous about. She pulled out her wand discretely and cast a quick glamor spell on both of them. They now looked like her parents. They were the first people she could think of.

As they waited for the Malfoy’s to pass they inspected all of the food on the list and took their time doing it. Other people in the store were not happy about it, but what did they know of matters like this? Nothing. Finally Malfoys Jr. and Sr. moved on, leaving Nicolette and Severus to breathe freely again. “Good thinking.” He hissed in her ear at the checkout counter. She smirked a little, he was not one to give out free compliments. They left the store and hauled the bags to the side of the building. She opened her endless bag and they set the grocery bags in one by one, taking care to put squishy things on top. She slung the bag over her shoulder and they walked back to the place that they had landed in. When they returned to her home she brought the bag inside and then returned outside. Severus wasn’t sure what she was doing, but he wanted to see. Nikko wanted to see too, so he wriggled out of the doorway, past Snape’s leg. She started to cast protective charms on her home. These were strong charms, Severus made a mental note of this. He made mental notes of a lot of things. Mostly of things that he had never seen before, or things that he found interesting. This fell under the latter category.

As she prepared the evening meal she brought up her stereo and let the music play. Severus was not a fan of noise, but this was not his house, so he suffered in silence. She knew that he didn’t like noise, but didn’t care, he wasn’t even welcome here, but she would turn it off soon. As she pulled dinner out of the oven she turned off the music with a casual flick of her wand. She sent Nikko to go and get Snape from his room. As dinner commenced Snape cleared his throat. “My work for Albus begins tomorrow.” He stated. She just kept eating. She didn’t care. He noticed. She was soon finished, and left the room. She went to the backyard to find something. She found a green willow branch and severed it from the rest of the tree. This would do. She brought it back to the house, and put a charm on it. But by the time she returned to the dining room Snape had gone. She sighed as she knocked on his door. As he opened the door again she was just finishing her spell. He watched the branch transfigure into a thin chain. “Wear this, and it will lead you back.” She handed it to him, and left him standing there.


	6. Chapter 6

He wasn’t sure whether to thank her or not. He knew that she was only doing her job, but still, it seemed that she acknowledged that he had value. He knew that wasn’t saying a lot, but it was something. He slid the chain through his fingers. It had fine craftsmanship. He, again, had to admit that she was a talented witch. He glanced down at the thin silver chain his fingers. He didn't really know whether to trust it or not, but he didn't really have a choice. She, on the other hand, did not trust him and she did have a choice. They were stuck together on Albus Dumbledore's orders. The chain would lead him back, as she said, but she was not happy about it.

The next morning when Nicolette woke, Severus had already gone. She actually smiled to herself, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. He would be gone during the days, all she would have to do would be see him at night. She could make dinner, and make sure that he was alive. After working out, she jumped in the shower to get ready for the day. It was summer holiday, so she rarely wore makeup, and this suited her just fine. She sat at her desk and graded exams and end of term papers for a few hours, then decided that she needed a break. She made her way to the freezer for some ice cream, cookies and cream was her favorite, and found the scooper in the drawer. As she finished grabbing a bowl down from the cabinet, an owl few in the front window. It was carrying the Daily Prophet, and a letter from Albus. She did not expect any post, but she figured that it was better to be in the loop with Albus Dumbledore, than out of the loop. He was known for keeping secrets after all. She took the paper, and the note, and payed the owl for it’s time. She added a mouse that Nikko had been playing with, as she suspected that the owl had a long way to go before it would have another meal. She looked at the ice cream, but decided that the note was more important. She slit the envelope open, and read it slowly, making sure that she read it right. “ _I have assigned Severus to watch over Harry this summer, he will only be in your home for the evenings to eat and sleep. I do hope everything is going well, and that you two are getting along. We will also be having an Order meeting on the 18 of July, this will be in your home, please expect people to be arriving all day. Forever yours ~ Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore._ ” So she wouldn’t be having to deal with him all summer, only the evenings. That made her feel better. He hoped that they were getting along? That infuriated her. He knew how much they liked each other, it tallied to a big fat 0. He knew that. Why on earth would they be getting along? It was true that she didn’t want him to die, but that was a far cry from getting along, being friends.

  
She looked at the newspaper after the note, and read it from front to back. She was not surprised that Fudge was being a coward. It was nothing new for him. She knew the real things going on in the world, and was not surprised by them either. Nothing really ever surprised her anymore. Her parents had been kind enough to her, but she and her three brothers were a different story. She was lucky that she was the oldest, or they may have had some kind of sway over her. She was glad that they didn’t. Nothing surprising. It wasn’t even surprising that she had been adopted as a baby, or that other wizards had experimented on her. That’s why she was the way she was. Anyone who knew her, knew not to get her angry. The experiments changed her. She wasn’t a normal witch anymore. She didn’t really even know what normal was.

She didn’t know why those people did things to her, but she knew that it affected her still. She knew that this was why she had anger issues. This was why she did what she did when she was angry. It was why Dumbledore had to keep an eye on her, and why he wanted her back at school. She couldn’t be trusted to be safe, not no her own, and definitely not among the public. She was volatile, and downright unpleasant at times. She just shook her head, and focused on making dinner for Severus.


	7. 7

That night she had dinner ready for Severus when he arrived home. He sat down at the table and looked up with tired eyes. Nicolette had suddenly appeared in the kitchen, Nikko at her side. “Dumbledore told me what you are doing this summer, in conjunction with you being the go between for Albus and Voldemort.” She tilted her head to one side. Severus narrowed his eyes at her. Why would Albus tell her? What could she know about his situation; what could she do? Little did he know, Nicolette was pondering these exact questions. She had no idea what her worth was, or why Albus held her in such high regard. She did know, however, that she was odd because of those blasted experiments.

After dinner Severus retired to his room, and pondered why he was assigned to watch the Potter boy. They detested each other, and that was putting it kindly. He may be Lilly’s son, but he was also James’ son. And he was so like James, so unlike Lilly. It was like the woman he had loved was gone forever, only her eyes remained. Every time he looked at Harry it hurt him. He saw Lilly in those eyes. It was like she was watching him, even after giving her life for that boy. He shook his head to remove the thought, he then turned his mind to the woman in the other room. Nicolette was odd, even for a witch. She was angry, brilliant, loyal, competitive, ruthless, and not bad looking. She had surpassed his expectations in classes, and Albus hired her right out of Hogwarts. He wouldn't have done that because of a whim. He must have a reason.

She actually knew the answers to some of his questions, but the only way he was going to get some answers out of her was through Veritaserum. And she knew what that looked like, so that wasn’t likely either. She watched Severus’ window carefully, waiting for it to darken. She wanted to be outside, and free. As his light went out she grabbed her towel and pulled her [swimsuit](https://www.fashmates.com/set/5b57b1c4acd0a87f650fe400-1533442929416) on underneath her clothes. The lake wasn’t far, and nothing cleared her head like a night swim in the lake. She padded out of the house and walked down toward the lake, the feeling of excitement growing. She loved the lake. She loved how the water felt in her hair, and the cool, crisp feeling of the water on her skin. It made her feel alive. She eased out of her shorts, and tank top, and threw her clothes on the ground. Her towel and wand lay out against a tree, and out of the reach of the water’s lapping edge. She liked to imagine that she was a mermaid, or some other water being. She loved the water, it was the only place that she couldn’t really hurt anything. She swam for a long while, not bothering to look at the shore. She had no idea that she was being watched from two places. Severus had followed her down to see what she was doing being out so late. However, the other man was not purely curious. He had mischief on his mind. He watched her greedily as she drifted in the water, her long blonde hair fanned out behind her.

As she rose from out of the water Severus turned to return to the cottage before she would even know that he was there. The other man chose this as his moment to pounce. He launched himself onto Nicolette’s back as she was reaching for the corner of her towel. He knocked her wand away from her, and forced her face down in the dirt, but she was not easy prey. She rolled and thrashed about, making it difficult for him to attempt to violate her. She knew what was going to happen the moment the man leapt on her. She struggled to her feet and screamed “Get off!” The man did not listen to her. However Severus heard her. He came running back down the path to the lake and came skidding to a stop. He now understood why Albus had so much interest in her. The man on her back was charred to the bone, his clothes still aflame on the damp beach sand. There was fire in her eyes. They had gone red, blue and yellow, all flickering around in her irises. Her hair had turned to flames, and she was shrieking like a phoenix. Severus didn’t know what to do, what was there to do at a time like this? He waited until she noticed that he was there. The flames dying down from her eyes, her hair long since extinguished. She took one look at Severus and walked back into the water for a moment. Steam rolled off of her, making the lake look as though it was boiling. The water directly around her was. She waited for a minute before walking out of the water again. She grabbed her towel and dried off, as though Severus weren’t even there. She needed a level head when she addressed this incident. She pulled her clothes on over the damp swimsuit, and threw her towel over her shoulder. She grabbed her wand from off the beach, and pointed it at the charred corpse. She twisted her hand in a very slight counter-clockwise motion, and prodded. A thin grey mist covered the body, and she started to stalk away. “Best be gone by the time the wolves catch the scent of dinner.” She muttered darkly. Severus looked at the man, and watched for a moment as she walked up the path alone. He wondered for a moment, how much could she take before burning up? He ran up the path after her, but as he caught up to her, he fell in step.

They didn’t speak until they reached the cottage. She closed herself in her room to change into a black tee shirt and light grey sweats. As she returned to the kitchen she saw Severus sitting at the table, obviously waiting for an explanation. She twiddled her thumbs for a moment before speaking. “So, you learn something new every day, huh?” Severus stared at her for a moment before bursting out in a great guffaw. She had not expected that reaction, especially from him. He had always been so dark, and brooding. He was laughing, almost hysterically so. She was sure that her face had shown her shock, but as his laughter died down she smiled slightly. There was a tense moment before she spoke again. “When I was a child I was experimented on by other wizards. They injected me with phoenix blood. They did it just to see what would happen.” She paused for a second, she had imagined what it looked like a thousand times. Wondering where this had been done to her, and who would be horrid enough to experiment on a baby. “The first 8 injections did nothing. Every one after that I would be able to do something else. 9, my eyes would reflect unseen fire. 10, I could burn clothes. 11, I started to be able to hurt people. It wasn’t enough for them. 12, I would give people boils and blisters. 13, chunks of the person would fall off. 14, people started to die. Still not enough. 15, flash charred. Finally the experiments were over, and I was sent to an orphanage. When I got mad my … extra talents would manifest themselves. The other kids couldn’t do anything like I could, so I was kept away from the others. I was adopted as a baby, and the rest is history.” She looked up from the floor to find Severus was looking down. He was pondering the things she had said. This explained a few things to him.

He wanted to know more, but knew better than to push it. “Goodnight.” He whispered, and fled the room. He needed to think. He couldn’t do that with her in the room. It was more important than ever for him to protect her now. If the Dark Lord learned of her power, he shuddered just thinking about the things he would force her to do. She was odd, and now he knew why. She was brilliant, and beautiful. He wouldn’t admit to the latter though. He wouldn’t let himself. She was his colleague, and he would not entertain the idea of her being even remotely attractive to him. But he knew that he was kidding himself. She was beautiful, and she knew it. So did he. He didn’t want to acknowledge it, but he knew it. There was still more he needed to know about her, and he silently wondered if he would ever learn all there was to know about her. He secretly doubted it, even though he desperately wanted to know. Who was Nicolette Warner, and how did she keep that secret for so long in a place like Hogwarts? Secrets there were pretty much always general knowledge, but she seemed to have kept one very well. 


	8. 8

The next morning Nicolette sat up in bed, not wanting to leave her room, but she knew better. She knew she would have to sooner or later. As her door creaked open, she saw a note on the table.

“I’m sorry about last night. I know you took a big risk telling me about your past, and I appreciate you being willing to tell me. I will be home late tonight, so don’t bother waiting up for me. I am grateful for the hospitality you have shown me.   
~S. S.”

She read the note again, using initials would ensure that this note could not be tracked to him if it fell into enemy hands, but he was convinced that no one was ever going to find her home. She smiled slightly at the writing. She liked his handwriting, it reminded her of her father’s. She looked out of the back window, seeing the lake at the base of the mountain made her think about the night before. When people caught her by surprise her reaction was always... unfiltered. They got full brunt of her power, and it never ended well for anyone. She smirked to herself for a moment, that man had terrible intentions, and got what he deserved. She walked to the fridge and prepared food for herself and Nikko. She sat at the coffee table in the living room, exams splayed in front of her. She looked at the work she had to do, and soon. She huffed a sigh, and set to it. Exam after exam, grade after grade, question after question. Her day progressed like this for four hours. When she looked up at the clock again, she grew immediately restless. She looked at all she had done. It was a great chunk, but she was nowhere near done. She decided to send the exams that she had graded to their owners. She cast a broad spell, sending each exam to the Wizarding Postmaster. He had a list of all of the families for exam scores. She turned toward her door, wanting to leave, but knew better. This was the only place she knew that no one would get hurt.

That night she made dinner for herself, Nikko, and Severus. She would put his in the microwave, and left a note. She figured that he knew how to work one. She adjourned to her room early, and stayed up late, contemplating the meeting coming up. It was still far away, but she felt like she was doing nothing while the rest of the Order was out in the world doing things that mattered. Albus always said that he trusted her, but she wasn’t so sure that he did. Why wasn’t she getting a real assignment, was he that afraid that she would lose her cool and hurt someone? She shook her head, just as she heard the door of her home open and close. She slid out of her room to make sure that it was just Severus. She crept down the hallway, and saw Severus reading the note, and glancing at the microwave. He pushed a few buttons on the machine, and leaned over the sink, as if he were going to be sick. “That’s the wrong place to throw up, thank you.” She growled from around the corner. He whipped around and brandished his wand at her. “Careful, I might think you mean to hurt me. And I’m not talking about your sharp wit.” She bit. He huffed a sigh, rolled his eyes, and turned back to the food in the microwave. “So, how was your day?” She asked lightly. “Potter watch is boring, and the Dark Lord’s tasks are becoming more involved. It makes it hard to keep my cover sometimes.” He decided to watch the floor instead of her reaction. She read this as disgust with her. “Oh, so my dirty little secret gets out, and you can’t look at me. The only person outside of my family who knew about that was Albus. And now that you’re privy to that information you think that I’m just some freak with a really bad temper!” She started to shout at him. He looked up from the floor, and straight at her. She approached him, and stopped within inches of him. “So what is it, am I just too strange for you, or are you just too good for me?” She hissed. He pushed forward, nearly pressing his body against hers. “No. I just didn’t know where we stood. But now that I know, nothing will be misunderstood again.” He growled at her. He went to sleep hungry that night, he was just so angry with her. Who did she think she was, speaking to him like that.

She was just as angry as he was. She left the kitchen and paced in her bedroom for hours after that. Who was he to judge her? He had been a Death Eater, and a good one at that. That made him no better than her, worse even. She felt the heat rolling off of her, but she knew how to stop herself from combusting. She shook her head to clear her mind. This usually helped, and like always, she felt her temperature cool as the minutes passed. She was such a hot-head sometimes. She looked out the window in her bedroom, and saw only darkness. She was used to this. Everything in her world felt dark, mostly because of the things that had been done to her as a child. She would never have a chance to be a normal wizarding child. She never had friends, or even acquaintances. She was too afraid to hurt someone. She had never even had her first kiss. She was 18 now, and had never even been on a date. She was used to not being wanted though. She was a Hufflepuff, so she was looked at as useless at school. She was quiet, so not looked at as smart. She was very pretty, but too much of an outsider for anyone to notice. She thought back on the Yule Ball. She had worn a beautiful dress*, and done her makeup to perfection in her mind. She danced alone for most of the night, swaying in a corner. Some of that was because she was a teacher, but she would have liked it if someone would have asked her to dance. Every girl likes it when she is asked to dance. Nicolette frowned to herself as she thought about how alone she felt then, and still did. She curled up in bed that night thinking about how useless she was, and Nikko curled up next to her. Nikko could sense her distress, and wanted to make her feel better. But this was beyond the abilities of an Arctic Fox to fix.

He stayed up that night, thinking about how insufferable she was. She was ill- tempered, but not in the same way he was. She was blunt, but not the way he was. She was mysterious, and not in the way he would have liked her to be. Usually to him, a mysterious person was someone he didn’t want to get to know. She was different. She was captivatingly mysterious. She caught his attention without effort, and kept it with a simple word. The last woman he remembered being able to do that was Lily Evans. There was no helping it, he was interested in her. He thought back to the Yule Ball. She had been beautiful then, but not on his radar. There was far too much going on to be thinking about his love life. The Dark Lord was working on obtaining a body, and he was on high alert. She was in the back of his mind all night long. Neither of the two slept much that night.

When she left her room in the morning, he was already gone. She opened the door to his room, and saw his closed trunk, a few sheets of parchment on the desk, an ink pot and quill, and a few books. The bed didn’t really look slept in, and the floors hardly had any trace of wear. It was like he barely existed in her home. She thought about last night. Anger flared up in her, but died down quickly. She knew better than to assume things, however, her interactions with other people were always a little… off. She just didn’t have very many social skills. 

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know how I'm doing, I really appreciate all types of comments!!!


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